FHSC Seminars: Fact from Fiction: what the great 19th century novels can tell us about our ancestors? with David Annal
Family History Through the Eyes of Great Novelists! Have you ever wondered what the great novelists of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries can teach us about our ancestors?
Join us as Dave Annal takes a fascinating exploration of family history hidden within the pages of some of Britain's best-loved novels. Drawing on the works of authors including Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, Thomas Hardy, George Eliot, Emily Brontë, and Wilkie Collins, Dave reveals how fiction can provide remarkable insights into the lives, experiences, and challenges faced by our ancestors. Using extracts covering subjects such as family relationships, birth, baptism, marriage, work, education, travel, and family research, Dave demonstrates how novelists can help us understand the social realities behind the records we use every day. Along the way, we encounter family trees, agricultural labourers, Victorian city streets, and even a Dickens character who could be described as one of the earliest family historians.
The talk concludes with a piece of advice from Great Expectations that every genealogist should remember: "Take nothing on its looks; take everything on evidence. There is no better rule." Whether you are a lover of classic literature, an enthusiastic family historian, or simply curious about how fiction can illuminate the past, this promises to be a thought-provoking and enjoyable presentation.
This event is also open to non-members, with fee of £5. Registration opens on 1st November when the red ‘Register [Individual]’ button will show on the top left of this page, just click on that button, you will also receive an email confirmation. Non-members will be required to create a free FHSC account and complete the payment details. Registration will close on 16th November.
The zoom links/meeting protocol will be forwarded to all registrants the day before the talk.
If you run into any difficulties with this, then please contact us on the dedicated seminar email address – The Seminar series is co-ordinated by Margaret Spate, Jean Laidlaw and Margaret Roberts and ALL correspondence, queries etc should be sent to the dedicated email address.
PLEASE NOTE WE DO NOT RECORD SEMINAR TALKS
Event Information
| Event Date | Wed 18-11-2026 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm |
| Registration Start Date | Sun 01-11-2026 12:05 am |
| Registration Cut Off Date | Mon 16-11-2026 11:55 pm |
| Cancel Before Date | Wed 18-11-2026 7:30 pm |
| Registered | 0 |
| Individual Price | FHSC members free, non-members £5 |
| Location | Zoom |
| Organising Group | FHSC Seminars |
Venue Information - Zoom
Used for all meetings hosted on Zoom unless hybrid
Speakers
Dave Annal
Dave Annal, has more than 40 years' experience as a family historian. A former Principal Family History Specialist at The National Archives, Dave has written a number of best selling family history books and is a regular contributor to Family Tree magazine where he runs the Family Tree Academy. Dave is also an experienced speaker with a large repertoire of talks, covering a variety of family history-based topics. He has spoken at Who Do You Think You Are? Live, Rootstech and other major Family History events and has also given talks at The National Archives, London Metropolitan Archives, The Society of Genealogists and numerous Family History Societies and U3A Groups around London and the South East. In 2019 Dave was awarded a Fellowship of the Society of Genealogists and in 2022 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. David now runs his own family history research business, Lifelines Research